A well polished frame looks great, repels dirt and is (relatively) easy to clean.
You can't really polish a frame when it's built up - especially around the bottom bracket / seat stay area which attracts the most crud. So to me, a thorough polishing is an necessary step in the build process.
After tapping all the fittings, I gave the frame a quick de-grease, then went at it with some automotive Carbuba wax. I gave it two coats and sprayed some silicone polish around the bottom bracket for good measure.
Here it is looking a little dull, prior to buffing:
You will notice that I have masked the drive side chain stay. That's because I want to apply a chain stay protector, and I sometime find they don't adhere as well to a polished surface.
I'm not normally that bothered about chainstay protectors, but for this build I have decided to go balls deep and get a roll of the ruinously expensive 3m stuff.
Anyway, it was a lovely day yesterday, and once buffed, the paintwork really popped in the sun:
Incidentally, that seat stay cap originally terminated in a flat line. I fashioned that point with a file. Quite proud of that.
Frame Prep, Task 4 - Polish that Frame
A well polished frame looks great, repels dirt and is (relatively) easy to clean.
You can't really polish a frame when it's built up - especially around the bottom bracket / seat stay area which attracts the most crud. So to me, a thorough polishing is an necessary step in the build process.
After tapping all the fittings, I gave the frame a quick de-grease, then went at it with some automotive Carbuba wax. I gave it two coats and sprayed some silicone polish around the bottom bracket for good measure.
Here it is looking a little dull, prior to buffing:
You will notice that I have masked the drive side chain stay. That's because I want to apply a chain stay protector, and I sometime find they don't adhere as well to a polished surface.
I'm not normally that bothered about chainstay protectors, but for this build I have decided to go balls deep and get a roll of the ruinously expensive 3m stuff.
Anyway, it was a lovely day yesterday, and once buffed, the paintwork really popped in the sun:
Incidentally, that seat stay cap originally terminated in a flat line. I fashioned that point with a file. Quite proud of that.